Question
I'm 62 years old. In my early twenties I injured my left foot large toe nail.  It never grew back properly and has always been rough, white, somewhat raised and very thick.  Today I stubbed it and nearly tore it off.  I went to the emergency room where the doctor froze the toe and cut the nail off at the cuticle.  What are the chances it will grow back?  What are my options? I told the ER doc that if it would not grow back normally, I was tired of putting up with it and was prepared to have it permanently removed. The doctor said that a 5% phenol solution, dabbed carefully on the nail bed, would kill the nail and it would not grow back.  If I decided to remove the nail permanently, should I have this done by a Podiatrist?

Answer
Go to a podiatrist to have the procedure done.They do the most-and will be least painful with the podiatrist.
I like sodium hydroxide over phenol---but in experienced hands-both will work.
Some docs like surgical excision-that's OK also.
All procedures have a recurrence rate of about 5-15% and so be prepared for a minor redo 6 months later.It's tough to kill thousands of nail cells without some.
Pick the doc that is honest and knowledgeable about regrowth.
Hope this helps!


Dr George Tsatsos
Elmhurst & Chicago Podiatrist
Board Certified in Foot and Ankle Surgery & Orthopedics
AnkleNFootCenter.com

Not Med Advice-Just Info for All
See your doctor